A COMPARISION OF PROKOFIEV’S USE OF CELLO TECHNIQUES IN HIS CELLO CONCERTO, OP. 58 (1938) AND SINFONIA CONCERTANTE, OP. 125 (1952) BY JIYEON HWANG SCHOLARLY ESSAY Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts in Music with a concentration in Performance and Literature in the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2016 Urbana, Illinois Doctoral Committee: Professor Emeritus Chester L. Alwes Associate Professor Dmitry Kouzov, Chair Professor Charlotte Mattax Moersch Professor Stephen Taylor, Director of Research ABSTRACT This document examines the artistic collaboration between Mstislav Rostropovich (1927– 2007) and Sergey Prokofiev (1891–1953) and provides a comparative study of Prokofiev's use of cello techniques in his Cello Concerto, Op. 58 (1938) and Sinfonia Concertante, Op. 125 (1952). It is interesting to see Prokofiev’s much better understanding of the possibilities of the cello in his Sinfonia Concertante, in comparison with his poor knowledge of the instrument in his Cello Concerto, where many passages are ineffective, difficult, or even unplayable. This document is intended to serve as a useful resource for cellists or anyone who are interested in the compositional background and process connected to Prokofiev’s Sinfonia Concertante. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION .....................................................................................................................1 Rostropovich’s Biography ...................................................................................................1 The Artistic Partnership between Rostropovich and Prokofiev ...........................................3 Prokofiev’s Early Compositions Featuring the Cello ..........................................................5 Prokofiev’s Cello Concerto Op. 58 ......................................................................................6 II. A COMPARISON BETWEEN SINFONIA CONCERTANTE, OP. 125 AND CELLO CONCERTO, OP. 58 .................................................................................................................8 Passage Work: First Movement ...........................................................................................8 Passage Work: Second Movement.....................................................................................11 Passage Work: Third Movement .......................................................................................12 Double Stopping: First Movement.....................................................................................13 Double Stopping: Second Movement ................................................................................15 Double Stopping: Third Movement ...................................................................................17 Bow Strokes: Second Movement .......................................................................................20 Bow Strokes: Third Movement ..........................................................................................23 Dynamic Range: Second Movement ................................................................................25 III. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................27 BIBLIOGRAPHY ..........................................................................................................................29 iii I. INTRODUCTION The purpose of this paper is to examine the artistic collaboration between Mstislav Rostropovich (1927–2007) and Sergey Prokofiev (1891–1953) through an analysis of Rostropovich’s editions of Prokofiev’s Sinfonia Concertante, Op. 125, focusing on the cello techniques used in the work. In 1947, Prokofiev first heard Rostropovich perform his Cello Concerto, Op. 58; while the work was poorly received, Prokofiev was impressed by Rostropovich’s artistry and interpretive skill. With Rostropovich’s advice and collaboration, Prokofiev decided to revise the work, renaming it Sinfonia Concertante, Op. 125, dedicating it to his new collaborate. Rostropovich’s Biography Born in 1927 in Baku, which was then part of the Soviet Union, Rostropovich is widely regarded as one of the greatest cellists of the second half of the 20th century.1 At the age of four, he began his musical studies with his mother, pianist Sofiya Nikolaevna Fedotova. At ten, he started cello lessons with his father, Leopold Vitoldovich Rostropovich, a former student of the world-famous Pablo Casals and himself an eminent cello professor at the Gnessin Institute in Moscow. In 1943, at the age of sixteen, the younger Rostropovich entered the Moscow Conservatory, studying cello with Semyon Kozolupov as well as composition with Dmitri Shostakovich and Vissarion Shebalin. 1 In this document, unless otherwise indicated, information about Rostropovich’s life is based on the article “Rostropovich, Mstislav” in Grove Music Online by Noël Goodwin. Edited by Deane Root. Accessed May 1, 2014, http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/. １ In 1942, Mstislav Rostropovich made his concert debut. Between 1947 and 1950, he earned important competition prizes and awards in Moscow, Prague, and Budapest; standing out among them, the Stalin Prize, considered the highest honor in the former Soviet Union. As a teacher, he held positions at the Leningrad and Moscow Conservatories. Throughout his career, he received numerous additional recognition and honors, among them the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Gold Medal (1970), the Award of the International League of Human Rights (1974), an honorary doctorate from Cambridge University (1975), the United States Presidential Medal of Freedom (1987), and decorations from governments of over fifteen countries. Rostropovich played an important role in the expansion of the solo cello repertoire. Through collaborations with numerous composers, he was instrumental in performing and advocating for many new works, offering “information and insights” between the composer and the audience.2 Among the Soviet composers who wrote music for Rostropovich are Reinhold Glière (1875–1956), Aram Khachaturian (1903–1978), Nikolai Myaskovsky (1881–1950), Alfred Schnittke (1934–1998), Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975), and Prokofiev. Composers from other countries who dedicated music to Rostropovich include Henri Dutilleux (1916–2013), Witold Lutosławski (1913–1994), Luciano Berio (1925–2003), Arthur Bliss (1891–1975), and Benjamin Britten (1913–1976). Reinhold Glière, Prokofiev’s teacher and a friend of Rostropovich’s father, was the first composer to recognize Rostropovich’s musical talent and potentials. Glière’s Concerto for Cello and Orchestra in D minor, Op. 87 (1946) was the first in a long line of compositions dedicated to 2 Ariane Todes, ed., Rostropovich: A Celebration, The Strad: Special Edition (London: Newsquest Specialist Media, 2007), 28. ２ Rostropovich. Russian composer Nikolay Myaskovsky, a close friend of Prokofiev’s from their student years, continuing their relationship through letters during Prokofiev’s time in Paris, connected Rostropovich with Prokofiev.3 In Rostropovich’s own view, his career as a supporter of new music began through performing Myaskovsky's music. “The Myaskovsky concerto,” he wrote, “was the beginning of a definite path in life for me. Myaskovsky led me to Prokofiev, and Prokofiev indirectly to Shostakovich, and through Shostakovich to Britten.”4 The Artistic Partnership between Rostropovich and Prokofiev Among Rostropovich’s several composition teachers was Prokofiev himself. In her book Rostropovich: The Musical Life of the Great Cellist, Teacher, and Legend, Elizabeth Wilson describes Rostropovich’s recollection of how he sought attention from Prokofiev: Of course he took next to no notice of me, since I was just a boy as far as he was concerned. But after December 1945, when I won the All-Union competition, he started to remember who I was. This was no doubt because I had played the concerto of his great friend Myaskovsky. I then decided to learn his first cello concerto and play it with piano at my solo recital in the Small Hall of the Conservatoire.5 Rostropovich recalled that, when Prokofiev listened to Miaskovsky’s cello sonata performed by Rostropovich at his recital in 1949, Prokofiev said to him, “I shall now start writing a cello sonata for you.”6 Rostropovich was twenty-two years old; Prokofiev was in his late fifties. 3 Elizabeth Wilson, Rostropovich: The Musical Life of the Great Cellist, Teacher, and Legend (Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, 2008), 64–66. 4 Ibid. 5 Ibid. 6 Tim Janof, "ICS Exclusive Interview: Conversation with Mstislav Rostropovich," April 5, 2006, http://www.cello.org/newsletter/articles/rostropovich/rostropovich.htm, accessed May 4, 2014. ３ The artistic partnership between Rostropovich and Prokofiev began in 1947 through Rostropovich’s performance of Prokofiev’s Cello Concerto No. 1, Op. 58 at the Moscow Conservatory. Completed in 1938, the concerto was poorly received due largely to the soloist’s Lev Berezovsky “poor interpretation.” Prokofiev was criticized for the work, which received little attention after its premiere.7 Unfortunately in the premiere neither the conductor nor the soloist was up to the task, both musically and technically, and the performance was a complete fiasco.8 It was not until Prokofiev attended Rostropovich's convincing performance that the composer resurrected his interest in writing for the cello. 9 Rostropovich later recalled his performance